Dinner, dancing and brawling at Delray's Union

Chan Lowe, Sun Sentinel

Overall impression: One can enjoy a very pleasant evening at Union, an Asian supper club on Delray Beach's bustling East Atlantic Avenue. Our party did. Fortunately, we arrived just early enough on a Saturday to take advantage of the "supper" part of the self-description, before the "club" identity muscled in.

The greeter at the door, our waitress and the atmosphere couldn't have been more welcoming. At Union, one's choice of dining indoors or outdoors can make a world of difference. We chose the patio, which featured wide banquettes arranged in conversation groups, a few high-topped tables, an outdoor bar, the friendly shade of palm trees and strategically placed fans equipped with misters that kept us comfortable even on a hot summer evening. It was peaceful and delightful. Had we opted for the interior, we would have been treated to a much-darker, booth-lined environment with black walls, a disco ball and a long bar bathed in blue dramatic lighting that cast an otherworldly rippling effect.

Our waitress cheerfully informed us that on Friday and Saturday nights, the tables inside get cleared away for the restaurant's conversion to a disco. She pointed to a large cloth screen mounted on the outside of the building. "Later, we project UFC fights up there," the waitress said. She wasn't kidding: As our leisurely evening of dining progressed and darkness fell, we were treated to a giant display of sweaty fighters throwing themselves against the sides of a cage. Our advice? Don't make reservations for dinner after 7:30 p.m.

As for the food, the menu is brief, divided into categories such as "Fingers," "Forks" and "Sides." It's imaginative, and in the hands of a good chef, the offerings as presented could be outstanding. But they didn't live up to expectations.

Starters: The "Fingers" are Union's strong suit, and the restaurant is serious about the name. We tried the chicken-lettuce wraps ($14), which arrived featuring a mound of minced chicken, water chestnuts, edamame, mushrooms and green onions, sweet and savory dipping sauces, and a pile of iceberg lettuce leaves. The filling was rich and powerful, but of a runny consistency that caused much of it to end up on our clothes as we tried to transport it to our mouths in the lettuce leaves. The fried-shrimp dumplings ($10) were a little soggy, but at least they looked homemade and came with a spicy chili-soy dressing. The most intriguing were the wonton cones ($12), which were like tiny fried ice-cream cones and stuffed with a daring — yet successful — combo of goat cheese, pistachio, cranberry chutney and a balsamic reduction. They crunched with little explosions of flavor. All these appetizers were perfect for sharing family-style.

Entree excellence: The "Forks" were, frankly, disappointing. The fried rice with chicken ($12), which also contained edamame, egg and truffle butter, tasted packaged, and the rice was undercooked. The garlic blue crab and shrimp, on a bed of garlic-infused noodles ($19), was far too light on the seafood, and the noodles were greasily dripping with garlic-butter sauce.

The poached salmon ($21) wasn't poached but grilled, came arrayed over a bed of julienne vegetables, and was unexceptional. The Mongolian skirt steak with sushi rice and stir-fried vegetables ($22) was the best of the entrees. It had been marinated to great tenderness and was well seared, and the sauce was flavorful.

Sweet! The waitress suggested the chocolate fondue ($12), which sounded like it might have been fun for a foursome. The menu said it came with dipping items such as strawberries, graham-cracker-crusted marshmallow pretzel sticks and toffee cookie bars. By this time, though, young men were hovering around us with velvet ropes and more sofas, itchy to convert our table into part of the viewing area for the fights. It was time to go. Our conclusion was that if Union could kick up the quality of the cuisine a few notches, we would definitely come back … on the earlier side.

Bar offerings: Union boasts a lengthy selection of signature drinks (it takes up the entire back of the menu) featuring all manner of alcoholic ingredients. A few of these with a couple of the "Fingers" would form the basis for a superlative evening, especially for a person into dance music.